Website: www.circleoffaithparish.org www.facebook.com/circleoffaithparish SEPTEMBER 2015 P A S T O R A N T H O N Y S R I P P L E S Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The nights are getting longer. School supplies are on sale again. The fair is over. And it won t be long before the crops begin turning colors. All of this can only mean one thing, the summer is quickly coming to a close, whether we are ready for it or not. Looking back on our third summer together as Circle of Faith Parish, what a fantastic summer it has been. We consistently had 50-55 people (even other community members) turn out for our summer series Mission on the Prairie. Thank you to everyone who helped prepare/serve meals! We hope that this series was enjoyable for you, but that it also got you thinking. Thinking about your church, this parish, and the mission that God has for us in our little corner of Minnesota. As we move into the new programmatic year, we will be focus on the Great Commission. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age. ~Matthew 28:19-20 In just those two verses Jesus says a lot, and luckily there is not enough room in this newsletter to talk about all of it in this article. But for what we will be focusing on this coming year, there are three main things that Jesus tells us our purpose as Christians and as the Body of Christ (the church) is to be. Go and make disciples The Gospel, the Good News of Jesus Christ, is intended for everyone. Jesus wants us to not rest until everyone has been told that He went to the cross to forgive their sins all so that they may have life in his name. Teaching them But don t forget about these new disciples that you have made. Now teach them. Help them grow in their relationship with God, strengthening their faith; so that they will put their trust in God alone rather than in the temporal things of this world. Obey everything I commanded you And what did Jesus command his disciples to do? Love the Lord your God, and love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:37, 39) Worship God, and serve your neighbor. That is what Jesus commanded his disciples to do. So over the course of the next 9 to 10 months, we will be challenged to go and make disciples. We also will be focusing on growing in our faith. And we will be working on worshiping God and serving our neighbors. Blessings to you as you enjoy these last days of summer, and as you prepare for the upcoming school year, harvest, and autumn season. In Christ, Pastor Anthony 1
P A S T O R E R I C S R I P P L E S Friends in Christ, Two years ago our three congregations, St. Peter, Trinity and Waverly, as the newly formed Circle of Faith parish spent a year around the theme of Who are we? We are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God s own people. (I Peter 2:9) Then last year we focused on What we do, reflecting on the words; worship, pray, rejoice, share and fellowship. (Acts 2:41-47) This year we are going to take a closer look at what Jesus asked his disciples to do, which is what we are also asked to do because we are disciples. Before Jesus went back to heaven he told his disciples to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything that he had commanded them. (Matthew 28:19-20) That is known as the Great Commission. We already started this with our mission on the prairie summer series that many of you attended. From Carl Rabbe I remember hearing how our mission begins in worship and then moves into witness and service in the world ( Go in peace, serve the Lord ), and I remember how the early Christians were known for taking care of orphans because that is one of the things that Jesus commanded. The Christians in Madagascar were also known for that. When twins were born the tradition was to leave one of them on an ant hill to die of exposure. The first president of the Malagasy Lutheran Church was one of those babies that had been taken off the ant hill and raised by a Christian family. From Pastor Larry Strenge, I remember Tootsie Rolls and how much more fun it is to give than receive and how our mission is not just overseas, but right next door and often accomplished through helping others in their time of need. From Dr. Alvin Luedke, I remember that our back yard is a mission field and that instead of looking at what we don t have and being afraid of the Giants, we are simply called to try and see what God is doing and point it out to others. This year we want to take a closer look at these things. How do we make disciples? How do we grow in our discipleship? Blessings, Pastor Eric & the Tuesday, Sept, 22 *new date* Tuesday, September 15 5:30 7:30 TBD 6:00 8:00 pm TBD September Sunday Worship Schedule Date St. Peter 8:30 am Trinity 10:30 am Waverly 10:30 am September 6 Communion Altar Color: Green September 13 Altar Color: Green Pr. Eric Pr. Anthony Rally Day Pr. Layne Nelson Pr. Anthony is on vacation Pr. Anthony Rally Day Pr. Eric Pr. Eric Rally Day September 20 Altar Color: Green September 27 - Communion Altar Color: Green Pr. Eric Pr. Eric Pr. Anthony Harvest Homecoming Pr. Anthony Pr. Anthony Pr. Eric 2
Tuesday Morning Coffees Starting, Sept 1 8:30 10:00 am @ St. Paul s UCC Welcome For everything there is a season, and a time for... Bible Study! MEN 6:30 am on Tuesday Led by Pastor Anthony Christoffels WOMEN 6:30 am on Thursdays Led by Pastor Stephanie Christoffels Meet at First Lutheran Church in Trimont Everyone is Welcome THANK YOU! Thank you to everyone who helped with making Circle of Faith s presence known around our communities during the town celebrations in July. We had a great turn out at both the Trimont and Welcome parades. Between the two parades, we handed out 1,300 freeze pops. Thank you to all of the walkers and riders and a special thank you to Darrel Klenz for making the artwork, and Gene Yackel for pulling the float. Pictured is Jack Potter on the parade float with Darrel s artwork to the left and one of our new Circle of Faith signs right in front. PARISH SUMMER PICNIC We had nice weather, excellent food, and a good turnout at our annual parish worship and picnic. St. Peter hosted this year at the Ceylon City Park. Thank you everyone who helped set up the outdoor worship space and thank you to John Frerichs for leading us on guitar. As you can see in the picture, even when worship is outside we are still Lutherans and like to sit in the back. 3
CONFIRMATION REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN Confirmation classes for 7 th and 8 th graders will start on Wednesday, September 9 th. Our focus this year is on the Bible, and we will be meeting on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 8:00 pm at Trinity in Welcome. Pastor Anthony and Pastor Eric will be leading/teaching these classes. If you are a 7 th or 8 th grader this fall, we would like to have you join us. Remember that 2 years of confirmation class is required in order to be confirmed. So if last year was your first year of confirmation, we invite you back for your second year. Online registration for confirmation is available and open. If you were in confirmation last year, you still need to register this year, so that we have the most up to date information. The calendar and other resources are also now available online. You can find everything that you need at www.circleoffaithparish.org/confirmation. If you prefer, there will be hard copies of everything available through the parish office. We are looking forward to another exciting year of confirmation. If you have any questions please talk to Pastor Anthony. YOUTH GROUP STARTS SEPTEMBER 16 th If you are in high school (9 th 12 th grade), we invite you to join the new youth group that we are starting this fall. There are lots of ideas of various things we can do, including a summer trip next year. We will be meeting once a month and we will begin with meeting at Trinity in Welcome on September 16 th from 7:00-8:00. If you d like more information please talk to Pastor Anthony or John Borchardt. Waverly s 4 th Annual Harvest Homecoming will be held on Sunday, September 20, 2015. Please come and join us for a day of faith, family, and farming and bring your family with you! Waverly will also be welcoming our 3 rd Grade Buddies and their families from Gloria Dei Lutheran in St. Paul to learn about Caring for God s Gifts through this annual event. We gather at Waverly between 9:45-10:30 a.m., then enjoy worship in the sanctuary, a Harvest Banquet in our tent outside, and a chance to interact and learn how the farming families at Waverly care for the gifts God has given us our livestock, our land, the people we work with, and the vocations to which God has called us. After our Harvest Banquet, there will be hay bale stacks, bobbing for apples, and hayrides, interspersed with meeting farm animals, viewing and climbing on new and antique farm machinery, and learning about current farming practices and conservation. It s a marvelous time for new and old friends to gather in God s name, giving thanks for the gifts God has given us. Wear your jeans, dress for the weather, and come prepared to share a day to remember! Everyone is welcome! 4
REMEMBER FLAT JESUS! Have you remembered Flat Jesus? Some of you have! Here are some pictures of where Jesus has been going with us: Liz Stahl (Trinity) and the Trimont Area Band playing during a parade. Jeannine Rasmussen (St. Peter) with great grandkids at Lake Itasca and the Headwaters of the Mississippi. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Pastor Anthony and family visiting Kris Scheff and her son Matthew in Denver. Kris was the organist at First Lutheran in Trimont before recently moving to Denver to care for her son. Nicholas and David (Pastor Anthony s children) out for a walk in downtown Cheyenne, WY. Janice Franck and Jeannine Rasmussen (St. Peter) at the SWMN WELCA convention with synod minister Pastor Linda Pederson. 5
Seminarian s Letters Home September 2015 To the membership of Circle of Faith Parish: Greetings to you all from Evanston, IL! I ve said it before and I ll keep saying it, but every year, summer seems to go by that much faster! We ve gotten through another summer of synod assembly, weddings, a different worship schedule, those fantastic Mission on the Prairie gatherings, and over a month of celebrating Holy Communion every week. Now, as the ELCA, we re moving toward God s Work, Our Hands Sunday in early September. I think this ties together really well with what we ve spent the last month doing. When I ve been authorized to preside at Communion at Circle of Faith, right after the Lord s Prayer, I usually break the bread and say, Behold what you are. Become what you receive the body of Christ. It s a quote from St. Augustine, but I think it s also a good point to remember when we come to Communion. We don t just come to the meal to receive forgiveness of sins (although that s certainly part of it, and we need it all the time). We come to become vessels for grace. When we eat that bread and drink that wine, we then leave church and are empowered by that food to be the face and hands of Jesus for somebody else. We break the bread in church and give it away, and then we go out and are broken and given away ourselves. When we bring a hotdish to someone who just had a death in the family, when we work on making a quilt to be given away for Lutheran World Relief, when we welcome our guests to Harvest Homecoming by feeding them and teaching them and introducing them to farm animals, we re doing what our baptism made us to do. Communion keeps us going in that journey. May our month of celebrating weekly Communion keep us conscious of that as we hit the streets to do God s work with our hands. Heading into our harvest season and autumn s colors, let us pray for God s blessing, using these words: Abundant God, we give you thanks for the fruitful earth, which provides what is needed for life. Bless those who work in the fields; grant favorable weather to all engaged in agriculture; and help us to ensure that all people share the fruits of the earth, rejoicing in your goodness; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. [ELW, Agriculture] The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Your fellow member and pilgrim, Carl P. Rabbe, M.Div. Drive Careful School starts the week of Sept 8th. LIKE US ON FACEBOOK Circle of Faith Parish www.facebook.com/circleoffaithparish Trinity Lutheran www.facebook.com/trinitylutheranwelcome Waverly Lutheran www.facebook.com/waverlylutheran 6
ST. PETER R I PPLES St. Peter Council Minutes August 17, 2015 Attending were Jeremy Wink, Angie Schmidt, Dean Koehler, Keith & Jody Franck Jody opened with devotions. Secretary s report was reviewed. Motion by Angie Schmidt, seconded by Jeremy Wink, to approve the secretary s report. Motion passed. Treasurer s report was reviewed. Motion by Angie Schmidt, seconded by Dean Koehler, to approve the Treasurer s report. Motion passed. Jody report Pastors notes. The Mission on the Prairie went well 50-55 in attendance each night. Pastor would like to get started on the discovering Hope book, would like 2 council members and 2 non- council members. Jody volunteered to be one from council, need one more. Old Business: Still working on getting the roof repaired. Keith and Jeremy are going to look into renting a lull and building a saddle to divert the water from the bell tower and then getting it tarred. Going also check with Wilbert to see who and what they had done to their roof. Talked to Jim Plumhoff about why the church is getting a septic charge on their monthly bill. The reason for this is the septic tank drains into the city line, he suggests that we eliminate the tank and hook directly to the city line. Going to wait on this till we get the roof fixed. Keith checked on light bulb sizes and is going to be checking with Federated for cost of switching to LED. Still waiting on our Gutter helmet man, Jody will be giving him a call this week. A motion was made by Angie Schmidt and seconded by Dean to donate $500 from St. Peter to Alex & Christie Schmidt for their ministry. Jody is working on looking into the insurance policy. New business: Sunday School will be starting on Sept. 13 th Angie is going to try something different this year by having Sunday School for 2 hours, 1 Sunday a month. Other business: Jeremy bought booking LP, Keith will take care of this. Next meeting: Monday September 21 st at 7:00 pm. We closed with an evening prayer and the Lord s Prayer. Meeting Adjourned. Jody Franck DATE Sept. 6 USHERS Dona and Marge Schley 13 Gene and Annette Yackle 20 Dale and Jeanne Leiding 27 Todd and Tina Peta Oct. 4 Jeremy and Chelsie Wink 7
September meeting: September 2 @ 9:00 am Hostesses: Sherry Schmidt and Ann Yackle Bible Study: Session 1 of the new series is on Keeping the Sabbath. All time is holy and human beings are meant to live in sync with God s rhythms. As I write this plans for the Ingham Bible Camp Hog Roast are in place. We will furnish 3 salads, 2 pans of bars and 2 auction pies. A report on the June Ice Cream Social was received with an estimated 380 people attending - 100 more than average. Donations $3,153, $1,400 for the chapel and $5,250 for the pie auction. A report on the Okoboji Quilt Auction shows there was $50,010 in bids from the auction and $3,724 from the Scandinavian feast. All this money enables the camps to continue providing excellent youth and family programs and they thank us for being part of the great ministry. Our 5 quilts sold for a total of $470.00 We are planning a day of quilting August 26 th. Lutheran World Relief is in great need of quilts. Also School Kits are urgently needed to fulfill requests around the world. Recently 6,350 kits were distributed in Syria to families affected by the ongoing conflict. Muriel reports a treasury balance of $2,535 at the last meeting. This includes the 4 breakfast and two nice donations. It was decided to give $200 to support this years God s Work, Our Hands backpack program. Coming up: Fall Gathering October 3 rd at Odin. September birthdays: Laurie Nelson Sept. 2 nd, Eileen Christensen Sept 3 rd, and Shirley Schmidt Sept 13 th. September Alter Care: Bernice Next Work Duty: Group 3 Alex and Christie Schmidt s address: Fischermuehle 11, 79400 Kandern, Germany We extend our sympathy to the Lois Duncan family. She will be missed by all of us. Our theme verse this month: Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. Exodus 20:8 Love, Jeannine 9:30-11:30 am KIDS AND PARENTS Sunday school starting - - - Sunday, September 13 Count your blessings, name them one by one. Count your blessings see what God has done. 8
TRINITY RIPPLES DATE USHERS COMMUMION Sept. 6 Liz and Tim Stahl Velma Schaal and Brian Burmeister 13 Dick and Marlys Traetow 20 Bob Swanson and Norman Schley 27 Tami and Dallas Rasmussen John Frerichs and Monica Chukuske Oct. 4 Larry and Deb Philipp John Garbers and Joel Detert COME SING IN THE CHOIR AT TRINITY If you like to sing or are interested in being part of Trinity s choir, then please come to our first practice. We will meet before worship on Sunday, September 20 th at 9:30 am. Marilyn Oelke will be our choir director. She has lots of ideas of different songs that we can sing for Thanksgiving, Advent and Christmas. For more information please talk to Marilyn or Pastor Anthony. ATTENTION ALL AREA YOUTH ages K 6 t h grade! is coming!! WOW will be starting on September 16, we will again go from 6:30-7:30. Online registration is available: www.circleoffaithparish.org/wow or paper registration is available at the Parish Office. WOW with a meal will be the first Wednesday of the month. LOOKING FOR MEAL SERVERS Last year during WOW (Worship On Wednesdays) we had generous individuals at Trinity who were willing to step up and provide a meal for our WOW kids and Confirmation students on Wednesday nights before their education time. This was certainly a highlight for the kids and the parents appreciated not having to worry about trying to get a quick meal in on those Wednesday nights before running on to church. This year, we would like to do WOW with a meal again. We will again start with offering a meal once a month (if we have more individuals interested than what we need, then we can start offering meals twice a month). Some individuals have already signed up, but we still need more help. Be begin serving the lite meal at 6:00 pm, before confirmation and WOW begin at 6:30 pm. If you are interested in preparing and serving a meal for our young people on November 4, December 2, January 6 or April 6, please talk to Velma Schaal (phone # 749-3317 or cell # 230-4444), please leave a message if no answer. 9
W A V E R L Y R I P P L E S TIME CHANGE: Starting September Waverly church time goes back to 10:30 am. Waverly s 4 th Annual Harvest Homecoming will be held on Sunday, September 20, 2015. Dear Waverly Sewing Guild, 7-15-2015 I want to extend a sincere thank you for the quilt you made and was received by a friend of mine. I know the hard work and time that goes into making a quilt and we want you to know how much it is appreciated. THANK YOU Through John Savereide, one of your quilts was given to Jim, who was diagnosed with an astrocytoma tumor in March. As he gets chills quite often after his surgery, radiation and chemo, and with some paralysis and numbness, the quilt has been a source of beauty, warmth and comfort to him. It has warmed his body as well as his heart for the kindness that someone cared and also receiving something made from the heart. It will replace another quilt that fell apart when washed before his surgery and it will remain with him through his journey. Thank you all so much for sharing your work with others. I know it has made a huge difference for Jim. God s Blessings for the gifts of your hands and hearts. With Peace, Gratitude and Love, Nancy Nelson and Jim Blau We have gotten many Thank-you s, but this really shows or tells how much a quilt can mean. Remember that quilting starts up again September 8 & 9. Any one is welcome and needed. We do need twin or larger new or slightly used sheets for backs. Cash donations for material would also be appreciated. DATE READER ACOLYTE CHILDREN S TIME COMMUNION ASSISTANT Sept. 6 Joel Rabbe Kirsten Rabbe Don Nordstrom 13 LuAnn Peterson Mary Lou/Jim Sherman John Sherman 20 Harvest Home 27 Paul Gaalswyk Tom Peterson Pastor Oct. 4 Mary Lou Sherman Bettin Family Kirsten Rabbe Susan Rathman September Ushers: Jon Helvig, Dan Helvig, Erwin Atzenhoefer, Tom Peterson, Jeff Lueth October Ushers: Bob Olson, Jim Sherman, Brian Clow, Dennis Krueger, Don Nordstrom 10
BIRTHDAYS / ANNIVERSARIES Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 Wayne Schultz Ken Wolford Erwin & Rosemary Atzenhoefer 2 Brandon Nordstrom Laurie Nelson 3 Paul Gaalswyk Jaren Helvig Jennifer Kuehl Lonnie Moffitt Eileen Christensen Scott Smith 4 Kally Philipp Don & Nancy Nordstrom 5 6 James Chukuske, Jr Zane Borchardt AleaSha Meyer De Elda Rose Noah Peta Roger & Joan Rezac 7 Dawn Hartung 8 Chelsie Wink 9 Lowell & Millie Wohlhuter 65 10 Mim Potter Gary Sathoff Mary Schultze 11 Kirsten Rabbe 12 Dawn & David Hartung 13 Shirley Schmidt 14 Doug Anderson Sarah Schwanz Elijah Minscer Aliana Minscer 15 16 Thomas Rahm 17 Sun Borchardt Samantha Chukuske 18 Alec Schmidt 19 Teya Schmidtke Kirsten & Joel Rabbe 30 Phillip & Sheila Bettin 20 Tanya Schmidtke 21 Jon Helvig Bev Meyer 22 23 Abby Loveland Cody Schwanz Kim Haugen Jamie Leiding 24 Bryson Rezac 25 Brady Schmidt Lena Petschke 26 Hazel Armbrust Jordan Petschke John & Julie Speckman 27 Erwin Atzenhoefer Aldean Speckman Janet Miller 28 29 Marty Scholl Matthew Kruse 30 Lacey Schmidtke Chase Petersen Joel & Jenna Minscer 11
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Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Worship hrs. St.P 8:30 TLC 10:30 WLC 10:30 September 2015 1 6:30 am SRBS Men WLC Mary Circle 7 pm @ Karen Koeder 2 9 am WELCA StP TSL Comm. 10 am Dorcas Circle 1:30 pm @ TSL Worship Comm. 3 6:30 am SRBS Women 4 5 6 Worship / Communion 7 Labor Day Parish Office Closed 8 6:30 am SRBS Men Parish Council Mtg. 6 pm TLC Council 7:30 pm 9 2 pm Goldfinch Communion Confirmation @ TLC 6:30 8 10 6:30 am SRBS Women WLC Council 7:00 pm 11 12 13 Worship God s Work Our Hands 14 15 6:30 am SRBS Men 9:30 am THCC Worship 6:00 pm Wine, Women & the Word 16 Confirmation @ TLC 6:30 8 Youth Group 7-8 WOW 6:30 7:30 17 6:30 am SRBS Women 18 19 20 Worship WLC 9:45 Harvest Homecoming TLC 9:30 am Choir practice 21 7 pm St. P Council Mtg. 22 6:30 am SRBS Men 5:30 pm Men s Garage 23 Confirmation @ TLC 6:30 8 WOW 6:30 7:30 24 6:30 am SRBS Women 25 26 27 Worship / Communion 28 29 6:30 am SRBS Men 30 Confirmation @ TLC 6:30 8 WOW 6:30 7:30 13
Circle of Faith Parish US Postage Paid P.O. Box 328 Non-Profit Organization Welcome, MN 56181 Permit No. 5 Welcome, MN 56181 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED HYMN OF THE MONTH Psalm 113:3 From the rising of the sun to its going down the Lord s name is to be praised. This is the theme of When Morning Gilds the Skies, an anonymous German hymn first appearing in 1744. It was translated into English by Edward Caswall, a Roman catholic priest a hundred years later. He loved the hymn and added several more verses in fact to a total of 28!! It begins with the rising of the sun, saying may Jesus name be praised. Following throughout the entire hymn, whether 4 or 28 verses, there are countless occasions when Jesus name must be praised. When you begin the day, O never fail to say, may Jesus Christ be praised. And at your work rejoice, to sing with heart and voice, may Jesus Christ be praised. Be this at meals your grace, in every time and place, may Jesus Christ be praised. When mirth for music longs, this is my song of songs, may Jesus Christ be praised. When evening shadow fall, this rings my curfew call, may Jesus Christ be praised. When evil thoughts molest, with this I shield my breast, may Jesus Christ be praised. Sing, sun and stars of space, sing, ye that see His face, may Jesus Christ be praised. God s whole creation o er, for aye and evermore, may Jesus Christ be praised. The story here is that an anonymous German hymn from the 1700 s, translated into English by a Roman Catholic priest, with many, many added verses simply declares that whoever you are, wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, MAY JESUS CHRIST BE PRAISED!! 14